Facial tissue



Feb. 10, 1953 DQNOVAN 2,627,974

FACIAL TISSUE Filed April 6, 1951 I3 7 INVENTOR.

j MAR/0N DONOVAN {9 BY M ATTORNE Y Patented Feb. 1Q, 1953 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE FACIAL TISSUE Marion Donovan, Saugatuck, Conn.

Application April 6, 1951, Serial No. 219,627

6 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in facial 'tissue s,facial tissuepackages and the manner of folding facial tissues, and has among otherobjects to provide a novel stack of facial tissues from which may bewithdrawn at the users option either one or more plies of a multiple-plyfacial tissue.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel package of facialtissues which will permit greater economy and ease in the use thereof.

Another object of the invention is to so fold and arrange a stack offacial tissues that either a predetermined part or all of a unitarytissue structure may be removed at the election of the user.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear as thedescription "proceeds. The invention will be better understood byreferring to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a facial tissue dispenser filled withfacial tissues.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged transverse longitudinal section of the upperportion of the dispenser with the .tissues in place ready for use.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged and expanded diagrammatic sectional view showingthe folds of a unitary, two-ply facial tissue.

A facial tissue is usually a unitary structure made up of two or moreplies or layers of light thin absorbent material aligned in face to facerelationship. For the sake of simplicity the invention will beillustrated with reference to a two-ply facial tissue, but it must beunderstood that the invention is also applicable to facial tissues madeup of three or more plies. Facial tissues are usually sold by the stackpacked in a dispensing container. l-ieretofore such tissues have beenarranged in the dispenser in either of two fashions. The plies of anindividual facial tissue may be attached to the plies of the nextsucceeding tissue in an end to end relationship by lines of weakness orthe tissues themselves as unitary structures may be partiallyinterleaved. In either such case the withdrawal of one tissue entirelyfrom the dispenser will draw the next tissue after it partly from thedispenser before the frictional resistance between the second tissue andthe dispenser is great enough to separate the two tissues either alongthe lines of weakness between the plies or from the interleavedrelationship of the tissues themselves; both such arrangements leave aportion of the next tissue exposed and outside of the dispenser. Theother arrangement is to separate the tissues completely from each otherand pack them in a container without interleaving; in :such case thetissues are withdrawn one at a time by inserting the'flngers into thedispensing container and grasping the top tissue of the stack; thewithdrawal .of one tissue doesnot partially withdraw from the dispensingcontainer the next. tissue in the stack.

In .both .of the above methods the tissues have been folded in variousfashions to minimize the size of the container, but all previousmethods-of folding and arranging the tissues have required the removalat one time of an entire facial tissue, i. e.,:all plies of themultiple-plyfacial tissue must necessarily be withdrawn from thedispenser at the same time and as a unit.

On many occasions a two-ply tissue is desirable because of its relativestrength and durability, as when blowing the nose or rubbing 01fdifiicult spots from hard surfaces, or because of its'superiorinsulation value when handling hot pots and pans, for example, or wipinghot grease therefrom, but many times it is desirable for ease andeconomy to use only one-ply at a time of the usual two-ply tissue, fortwo single-ply tissues will afford twice the amount of absorptivesurface area when wiping or cleaning moist or greasy surfaces, wherestrength and durability of the tissue are not so important,than'will onetwo-ply tissue. However, only one ply cannot be withdrawn in the abovemethods of folding and packaging facial tissues, and therefore it hasbeen necessary to withdraw the entire two-ply tissue and then attempt toseparate the two plies. Since very light, absorbent material is used inthe manufacture of facial tissue, this act of Separation is bothersome,frequently difficult, and is apt to result in shredding one or bothplies. It further results in wasting the temporarily unwanted secondply, because it is impossible to reinsert the same in the dispenser inits former orderly arrangement and sanitary condition.

My invention obviates both this annoyance and also this Waste by sofolding the plies making up each facial tissue in the stack that eitheran entire multiple-ply facial tissue may be removed as a unitarystructure or a predetermined num ber of its plurality of plies may beremoved. In its preferred embodiment my invention provides that either atwo-ply facial tissue may be removed in its entirety as a unitarystructure or only one ply thereof may be withdrawn, all at the electionof the user. It will be understood that my invention provides for facialtissues made up of more than two plies and for the withdrawal of theentire structure or any predetermined number of plies thereof less thanthe entire structure,

but I choose to illustrate as the preferred embodiment a two-ply facialtissue so folded as to permit the withdrawal of the entire facial tissueor only one ply thereof.

A. sectional view of a facial tissue 5 of this latter character is shownin Fig. 3 having a top ply 6 and a bottom ply I. The top ply 6 has acentral portion 8 which will remain unfolded, a marginal portion 9 atone side thereof, and a marginal portion III at the other side thereof,both 9 and III being areas to be folded. Lower ply I has a centralportion II which will remain unfolded and a marginal portion I2 at oneside thereof and a marginal portion I3 at the other side thereof, bothI2 and I3 being areas to be folded. The two plies 6 and I are in face toface alignment to form facial tissue 5, and the marginal area at oneside of facial tissue 5, being areas 9 and I2 of plies B and 1respectively, is folded back upon itself as a single unit, the formerlyupper face of bottom ply I at area I2 remaining in contact with theformerly lower face of upper ply 6 at area 9 at all times and theformerly bottom face of folded portion I2 of lower ply I becoming theupper face of facial tissue 5 at the folded portion. When so folded theupper surface of facial tissue 5 is provided with a twoply longitudinaltab extending the length thereof along one side portion.

On the opposite side the two plies B and I of facial tissue 5 are foldedseparately. Facial tissue 5 is not folded as a unit as before butinstead marginal area ID of upper ply 5 is folded back upon centralportion 8 thereof and marginal area I3 of lower ply I is foldedseparately back upon central portion Il thereof, thereby withdrawing theformerly upper face of marginal area I3 of lower sheet I from contactwith the formerly bottom face of marginal area III of upper sheet 6.When so folded the upper surface of facial tissue 5 is provided with asingle-ply longitudinal tab extending lengthwise along its side portionopposite to the side folded to present the two-ply tab, said single-plytab consisting only of the folded portion ID of upper ply 6. Foldedportion I3 of lower ply I also forms a similar longitudinal tab but thisis concealed by the unfolded central portion 8 of upper ply 6 and is notaccessible from above prior to the removal of upper ply 6.

A stack of two-ply tissues 5, each of which is folded in the mannerabove described, is packed in alignment in a dispensing container It asshown in Fig. 2. Container I4 is provided with an access opening I5rimning lengthwise through the central portion of the top sectionthereof as is shown in Fig. 1, through which access opening I5 the usersfingers can be inserted and a facial tissue or a part thereof removed.The folded tab portions, comprising on one side areas '3 and I2 of plies6 and 1 respectively and on the opposite side area I of ply 6, areaccessible to the user at each side of access opening I5. The containerbears on the top section thereof indicia I and II on either side of theaccess opening to indicate that the tissues are so stacked in thecontainer that below the side bearing the indicia I there is positionedthe side of facial tissue having two separate single folds, i. e. I!)and I3, and that below the side bearing indicia II there is positionedthe side of facial tissue 5 having only a single two-ply fold made up ofareas 8 and I2. Both longitudinal tabs at each side of facial tissue 5on the top surface thereof are .4 equally accessible to the user throughaccess opening I5.

When the users finger are inserted through the center of access opening15 they will contact central portion 3 of upper ply 6. If the fingersare moved toward that side of the container designated I on the facethereof and still in contact with the upper face of upper ply 6, theywill penetrate between the upper face of the nonfolded central portion 8of upper ply 6 and the folded back portion III of upper ply 6 as isbetter shown in Fig. 3. If this longitudinal tab area I0 is grasped andthe fingers are withdrawn through access opening I5, only upper ply G offacial tissue 5 will be removed from the container and lower ply I offacial tissue 5 will remain in the container in the same orderlyarrangement and sanitary condition as before.

If the user's fingers are inserted through access opening I5 and aremoved toward that side of the container designated II on the facethereof and still in contact with central portion 8 of the upper face ofupper ply 6, they will penetrate between the non-folded central portion8 of upper ply B and the folded back portion 9 of upper ply 6 over whichlies folded back portion I2 of lower ply I as can be seen in Fig. 3. Ifthis longitudinal tab made up of folded back areas 9 and I2 is graspedand the fingers are withdrawn through access opening I5, the entirefacial tissue 5 will be withdrawn from the container as a unitarystructure, both plies I5 and I remaining together in their usualposition to make a complete twoply facial tissue. Vfhen this two-plyfacial tissue 5 is held by a grasp on areas 9 and I2, a shake of thehand will cause the separately folded back portion I3 of lower ply I tounfold and present the customary two-ply facial tissue with the plies inface to face alignment throughout.

Thus, depending in which direction the users fingers are inserted andfrom which side of the container the entire accessible folded portion orlongitudinal tab is grasped and the withdrawal pull exerted, the usermay at his election with draw only a predetermined part of the unitary,multiple-ply facial tissue structure, such as, for example, one ply, ormay withdraw as a unitary structure the entire multiple-ply facialtissue.

By such an arrangement and folding of the plies making up each tissue,waste of tissue will be overcome even though only one ply is desired,yet the two-ply tissue is available should it be needed. It will benoted that if a single ply 6 is first withdrawn, the occasion mightarise when a full two-ply tissue was desired when only a single ply Iwas at the top of the stack of tissues. In such a situation only singleply 'I will be withdrawn no matter toward which side of the containerthe inserted fingers are directed and from which the pull is exerted.However, the situation is easily remedied for immediately uponwithdrawal of ply l the user realizes that it is a single ply and not acomplete facial tissue, and therefore he withdraws single ply 6 andplaces the two plies together in face to face alignment, thereby forminga usual two-ply tissue. Because of the nature of the material used inthe manufacture of facial tissues it will be found that the two pliesreadily adhere to each other when placed face to face together, althoughthey are difiicult to separate when so placed together and the edges arein alignment.

While I have herein described and shown in detail one form in which myinvention may be embodied, it will be understood that the constructionand arrangement thereof may be altered without departing from the spiritand scope of said invention and in particular that the number of pliesin each facial tissue need not be limited to two but may extend to threeor more. Also, for example, my invention is applicable where a facialtissue is made up of a plurality of composite units, each such unitbeing formed of a plurality of plies in face to face alignment, in whichcase each composite unit is treated as though it were a single ply 6 or7 in the foregoing description, i. e., all composite units are foldedback together as a unitary structure along one side of the tissue uponthe uppermost such unit and each composite unit is folded backseparately upon itself along the opposite side thereof. Regardless ofthe number of plies, or composite units each made up of a predeterminednumber of plies, which may go to make up the complete facial tissue, theheart of my invention will be utilized as long as all plies or compositeunits of each tissue structure are folded back together along one sidethereof and are folded back separately on the opposite side thereof.

In view of the foregoing description, the followplies being foldedseparately with each resting upon one of its own surfaces.

2. A facial tissue comprising a plurality of superimposed plies of softabsorbent material having the edges thereof in substantial registry,

the edge portions of all of said plies on one side thereof being foldedback together as a unitary structure resting upon the upper surface ofthe uppermost ply, and the opposite edge portions of a predeterminednumber of said plies being folded back separately with each resting uponits own upper surface.

3. A facial tissue comprising two separate superimposed plies of lightabsorbent material having the edges thereof in substantial registry,

the edge portions of both of said plies on one side thereof being foldedback together as a unitary structure resting upon the upper surface ofthe uppermost ply, and the opposite edge portions of each of said pliesbeing folded back separately with each resting upon its own uppersurface.

4. A stack comprising a plurality of aligned facial tissues, each saidtissue being formed of at least one ply of soft absorbent materialsuperimposed upon another separate ply of the same material with theedges of said plies in substantial registry, the edge portions of all ofsaid plies of each tissue being folded back together on one side of saidtissue as a unitary structure resting upon the upper surface of theuppermost ply, and the opposite edge portions of a predetermined numberof said plies in each said tissue being folded back separately with eachresting upon its own upper surface.

5. A package of facial tissues comprising a box-dike dispensingcontainer having a centrally located access opening runningsubstantially lengthwise of the top section thereof and a plurality offacial tissues arranged in superimposed alignment therein, each of saidtissues being formed of a plurality of individual superimposed plies ofsoft, absorbent material, all said plies of each said tissue beingfolded back together as a unitary structure upon the uppermost plythereof along one side portion of said tissue to form a longitudinalmultiple-ply tab at said side portion, said tab being accessible fromthe access opening, and each said ply of each said tissue being foldedback separately upon itself along the opposite side portion of each saidtissue to form a plurality of longitudinal single-ply tabs at saidopposite side portion, the tab of the uppermost ply only beingaccessible from above, the tabs of both sides of each said tissue beingparallel to the access opening in the top section of said container,whereby a pull exerted through said access opening upon the tabconsisting of all plies will remove the entire tissue as a unitarystructure from the container and a pull exerted through said openingupon the tab consisting of the single uppermost ply of said tissue willremove from the container only said single uppermost ply.

6. A package of facial tissues comprising a dispensing containerprovided with a centrally located opening running substantially thelength of the top section thereof, a plurality of aligned facial tissuescontained in said container, each of said facial tissues being formed ofa plurality of individual superimposed plies of soft, absorbentmaterial, all said plies of each said tissue being folded back togetheras a unitary structure upon the top face of said tissue at one sidethereof to form a longitudinal, multiple-ply tab parallel to the centralopening in said container top and with the tab of the top tissue in thestack immediately accessible therefrom, and each ply of each said tissuebeing folded back separately upon the top face of each respective ply atthe opposite side thereof to provide a plurality of longitudinal,single-ply tab-s parallel to the central opening in said container topbut only the tab of the uppermost ply of the top tissue in the stackbeing immediately accessible from said opening, whereby when from oneside the tab of the entire tissue is grasped, and a pull is exertedthrough said central opening, the entire tissue may be removed as aunitary structure from the container and when from the opposite side thetab of the single uppermost ply is grasped, and a like pull exerted,such single uppermost ply only may be removed.

MARION DONOVAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,307,443 Irwin June 24, 19192,514,612 Snow July 11, 1950 2,529,853 Taggart Nov. 14, 1950

